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Department for International Development

max answer › question first answered

2019-08-05T16:23:17.61Z

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To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of an early
season drought in North Korea and its impact on harvests, food production, health
and levels of malnutrition in that country.

<p>The humanitarian situation in DPRK is a grave concern. The UN estimates that rainfall
levels are relatively low in North Korea and food production is subsequently estimated
at about 5 million tons, the lowest in 10 years. 10.1 million people – 40% of the
population – require food assistance.</p>

To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are offering the government of Burundi
in hosting Congolese refugees being displaced through the ongoing conflict in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo.

<p>The Department for International Development’s (DFID) humanitarian programme in
Burundi is addressing food insecurity and malnutrition, providing support to internally
displaced people and to returning refugees and their host communities. It does not
provide support to Congolese refugees. We continue to monitor the overall humanitarian
situation in Burundi, including that of Congolese refugees, given ongoing risks in
the country.</p><p> </p><p>The UK also remains committed to reducing poverty and instability
in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) – a key driver for migration to neighbouring
countries. The UK is funding stabilisation activities in Eastern DRC to address the
underlying drivers of conflict, and we remain at the forefront of the humanitarian
response in the DRC.</p>

<p>The Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI) provides full relief on eligible
debt owed by countries which have reached Completion Point of the Heavily Indebted
Poor Countries Initiative, to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International
Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank, and the African Development Fund
(AfDF) of the African Development Bank. The UK contributed £107 million to the MDRI
in 2017 and this is all official development assistance (ODA).</p><p> </p><p>When
necessary, the UK also provides relief on loans made bilaterally by the Export Credit
Guarantee Department (ECGD) to developing countries, through the coordinated process
of the Paris Club of creditors. In 2017 the UK provided £3 million of ODA as such
debt relief on ECGD loans.</p><p> </p><p>Therefore in 2017 the total UK debt relief,
through the MDRI and bilaterally, represented 0.78% of total UK ODA in 2017.</p>

<p>The spread of Ebola to Goma is deeply concerning. Goma’s position on the border
increases the chance of Ebola spreading to Rwanda.</p><p> </p><p>The UK is a leading
donor to the Ebola response in DRC and has played a pivotal role in helping neighbouring
countries like Rwanda prepare. On 15 July, DFID announced that the UK would provide
up to a further £50 million to the response to December 2019. UK Aid is supporting
a range of activities, including the construction of screening facilities at border
crossings and the vaccination of health workers in DRC and the region.</p>

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department
is taking to overcome the (a) local mistrust of health officials and (b) militia violence
which have impeded efforts to prevent the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic
of Congo from spreading further.

<p>The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is the second largest
in history and the first in a conflict zone. The UK has been a major supporter of
the response since the start, providing funding, technical expertise, and political
support.</p><p> </p><p>The response has been hampered by repeated attacks against
health workers and health facilities. Improving community trust and ownership are
essential to getting the outbreak under control. UK funding supports community engagement
and working with local leaders and religious groups to foster trust and ownership.
It supports efforts to understand community concerns better and feed this understanding
back into the response. Examples include employing people who have recovered from
Ebola to talk to communities about the health care they received as a way to build
community trust in health workers.</p><p> </p><p>The UK and other donors are also
supporting the UN to strengthen security in Ebola affected areas to protect both communities
and response workers.</p>

<p>The UK tracks Yemen’s imports and ports to monitor trends and predict pressure
points in humanitarian supplies. We work with the private sector, non-governmental
organisations and United Nations agencies to improve our understanding of how Aden
Port functions and to advise the United Arab Emirates who are leading international
efforts to improve Aden Port.</p><p> </p><p>The UK regularly raises humanitarian concerns
with both parties to the conflict, calling on them to comply with UN Security Council
Resolution 2451 and facilitate safe, rapid, and unhindered access for humanitarian
and commercial supplies, including through Aden Port.</p>

<p>The Government is firmly committed to delivering the Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs). The SDGs are embedded in the UK Aid Strategy and DFID’s Single Departmental
Plan which is now modelled around the 5Ps of People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and
Partnerships.</p><p> </p><p>The first Voluntary National Review (VNR) of UK progress
towards the SDGs, published in June and presented to the UN in July, highlights the
range of activities the Government and a wide variety of partners are undertaking
to deliver the Goals at home and abroad. In preparing the Review, the Government participated
in 35 engagement events, consulted over 350 organisations and received 270 case studies.
The Government has also sought the views of over 6,000 members of the public on investing
in the SDGs.</p><p> </p><p>The UK’s support for international development is our major
contribution to delivering the Goals abroad and entails close cooperation and coordination
with other bilateral partners and numerous multilateral organisations. Activities
include support for health and education, peace and security and climate action.</p><p>
</p><p>There is still more to be done. The SDG Summit at the UN General Assembly in
September will be an important global moment for the UK and partners to further promote
the Goals, and reaffirm their commitment to delivering them.</p>

<p>The Department for International Development’s (DFID) portfolio of commercial agriculture
programmes includes support which helps promote the development of sustainable fisheries
and aquaculture in developing countries. For example, the Livelihoods and Food Security
Trust Fund (LIFT) programme in Myanmar promotes community management of wild fisheries.
Poor households have better maintained their fish stocks, and adopted new marketing
practices, which has helped improve their income and food and nutrition security.
The new DFID Commercial Agriculture for Smallholders and Agribusiness programme will
provide technical assistance to small local businesses working in the aquaculture
sector in Malawi and will work with investors to promote responsible investment in
this sector. DFID is also supporting sustainable small-scale aquaculture, and our
support has contributed to improving the fish-based livelihoods of 51,235 households
and 72,264 people.</p><p> </p><p>As part of our cross-Government commitment to protecting
the global environment, DFID has provided £150 million and DEFRA £100 million funding
to the Global Environment Facility 7th replenishment (2018-2022), which includes support
for small island developing states in managing their marine territories. We also provide
a core contribution to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO),
which supports countries in sustainable fisheries management. Progress is reported
in the FAO’s flagship State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture.</p>

<p>One-third of the world’s people live under conditions of severe water scarcity
at least 1 month of the year and global demand is now expected to outstrip supply
by 40% in 2030, based on current trends.</p><p> </p><p>Our focus has been on access
to water and sanitation, and since 2015 DFID has helped more than 51 million people
in Africa and Asia gain access to a drinking water supply or toilet facilities. We
have recognised the need to invest more in addressing water scarcity, and we are funding
a £52m Water Security programme to look at how best to integrate water resource management
into development programmes, particularly in cities and agriculture. New programming
being developed on water will have a focus on water scarcity.</p>

<p>The Government is committed to delivering the Goals at home and around the world.
The UK’s first Voluntary National Review shows some of the actions we are taking on
all 17 Goals, and the progress we are making. For example, our pioneering Modern Slavery
Act is supporting our delivery of Goals 8 and 16, to tackle injustices and exploitation
in the UK and internationally.</p><p> </p><p>The Goals are embedded in departments’
single departmental plans – this remains the most effective mechanism for monitoring
their delivery.</p><p> </p><p>Following the Voluntary National Review, we are reviewing
existing mechanisms that oversee Government’s contribution to domestic delivery of
the Goals, building on the Single Departmental Plan process. This will strengthen
accountability and cross-government work on the Goals.</p>